THE HERALD REPORTS TODAY
KEVIN FERRIE, Chief Rugby Writer July 31 2006
West of Scotland's Burnbrae will play host to Glasgow Warriors' glamour pre-season friendly with Jonny Wilkinson's Newcastle Falcons next month and could be the pro team's new home.
The visit of the English Premiership side on Friday, August 18 will offer a reminder of glory days to West supporters, who have been used to hosting top- flight club and district matches down the years. With the main event kicking off at 6.30 there will also be a curtain-raiser as the respective academy sides face one another.
Warriors officials yesterday confirmed that the Milngavie ground is among the contenders to house an organisation that has been subjected to a nomadic existence in recent years.
"We have a shortlist of grounds that we are considering using for the coming season and Burnbrae is among them," said the club's spokesperson.
"We are hoping to be able to announce a decision by the end of this week."
While the players enjoy the playing surface at Partick Thistle's Firhill, where they played most of their games in the second half of last season, attendances have been disappointing, suggesting resistance to the use of a football ground among at least some traditional rugby supporters.
That move followed an acrimonious dispute between the Scottish Rugby Union, the Warriors' owners, and the Hillhead/Jordanhill club, whose Hughenden ground had been the pro team's principal home for several seasons. There remain issues regarding the quality of facilities there.
While Glasgow City Council is committed to redeveloping Scotstoun Stadium as a rugby and athletics venue, the work there will not be completed until 2008.
All of that has led to an anxious search for alternatives but the use of Burnbrae for anything more than a one-off fixture would require the erection of extra stands and floodlighting. While time is tight it could, then, be advisable for any longer-term decision to be delayed until after the Falcons' visit, which would then provide an opportunity to assess the ground's potential.
That includes the possibility of allowing the organisation to base itself properly at a single location.
At the moment team runs and physio treatment take place at a different venue from weights and conditioning work.

This article was posted on 31-Jul-2006, 10:29 by Hugh Barrow.